CINCINNATI — One dog bite wiped out mail delivery for a community of seniors after their neighbor's dog attacked a mail carrier. What followed was six months without deliveries.
"It's a problem, a stress problem I don't need," Darlene Hicks said.
Hicks, 82, and her neighbors feel cut off.
"To wake up and not have mail for four or five days, I'm wondering what's going on," Hicks said. "Is the post office on strike?"
At the end of their cul-du-sac in Avondale, someone's dog bit a mail carrier in February. Since then, no one on Clinton Springs Avenue gets deliveries.
"What's wrong with stopping (the dog owner's) mail," Hicks said. "(The mailman) got bit on her property. Stop her mail. Don't stop mine because I have nothing to do with that."
A postal service spokesperson apologized but told WCPO that carriers twice tried delivering after the attack.
"The safety of our delivery employees and the aim to provide great customer service are both paramount to who we are as an organization," Naddia Dhalai, United States Postal Service Corporate Communications for Ohio 1 and Ohio 2 Districts, said. "Due to a dog attack, the Postal Service suspended delivery in this area. Management did reattempt delivery on two occasions, however the dog continues to roam the neighborhood unrestrained. Management has informed the owner and delivery will resume when it is safe for the letter carrier."
Dhalai said that aggressive and unrestrained animals are a serious issue.
We request all customers keep their dogs restrained during normal delivery hours to protect the safety of the letter carriers," Dhalai said.
Last year, dogs attacked 5,400 postal service employees across the country, according to USPS. It is a serious enough problem that cutting off delivery, even to neighbors, is post office policy.
While Hicks wants her mailman kept safe, the retired mom of six who ran a janitorial service for more than three decades struggles to keep up with bills.
Without home mail delivery, she and her neighbors have to pick it up at the nearest post office during business hours. It is no easy commute nor a small stress.
"I'm a senior," Hicks said. "I have arthritis. The people that you owe don't want to hear that you're late paying because you didn't receive your mail. I don't know what your answer is, but I need my mail."
"Management is working with the dog owner and delivery will resume when it's safe," Dhalai said. "We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience."
Dhalai encourages customers to reach out to USPS with any concerns or issues.
Postal service customers can go to usps.com and click on “Contact Us” at the bottom of the homepage to complain. Every email will be carefully documented and appropriate action taken to strengthen service, Dhalai said. The USPS Twitter and Facebook accounts can also provide help, she added.
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